The ever-popular horror genre is synonymous with mind-boggling movies that perplex our gray matter and impart nightmarish scenarios. And considering how enormous the genre is as a whole, occasionally a film comes along that is eventually deemed too horrifying to even completely finish, which is exactly the case with 1978’s low-budget cult classic Piranha.
Undoubtedly, 1978 was a major year for the horror genre, seeing as John Carpenter’s cinematic masterpiece Halloween would eventually reach legendary status and catapult the career of star Jamie Lee Curtis. On the other hand, director Joe Dante sought to juxtapose themes of horror and comedy in an attempt to recreate the magic of 1975’s iconic creature feature Jaws. Although, unlike a vengeful great white shark attacking civilians, Piranha features a school of mutant piranha fish that target visitors of a summer camp.
Despite its low-budget funding of $770,000, Dante’s creature feature went on to become a commercial success, impressively grossing $16 million. In the years following its release, the film became a cult classic amongst horror fans and even launched a franchise, with sequels and remakes being made to replicate the original’s overall success.
Apparently, the bonafide cult status is more alive than ever before, with the Heather Menzies vehicle metaphorically taking a delicious bite out of the streaming charts and reinvigorating its label as a horror classic. As per FlixPatrol, Piranha has jumped a considerable number of spots to crack into Netflix’s most-watched films — proving that the classics truly never die.
Published: Sep 5, 2022 06:03 am